


Don't Look Back, You're Safe Now

by green78



Series: Imagine Your OTP: Red Beauty [3]
Category: Once Upon a Time (TV)
Genre: F/F, Fluffy, Imagine your OTP, Karaoke, Red Beauty - Freeform
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2013-07-06
Updated: 2013-07-06
Packaged: 2017-12-17 22:34:20
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,576
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/872727
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/green78/pseuds/green78
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Ruby sang her heart out for Belle, and now it's Belle's turn. Next in the Red Beauty OTP series, still using the karaoke prompt (Emma <i>did</i> say they'd get Belle onstage).</p>
            </blockquote>





	Don't Look Back, You're Safe Now

It was karaoke night again at the Rabbit Hole, and unlike Ruby had been, Belle wasn't nervous about singing in front of a crowd. She noted, however, that Ruby was almost bouncing on her stool with excitement, eager to see Belle onstage. “I can't wait!” she said, clinging to her fiancée’s hand. “You're gonna be amazing!”

“I dunno, I'm just so nervous,” Belle teased with playful sarcasm.

Ruby rolled her eyes. “Oh, come on, you're gonna be fine! You're too brilliant to be nervous!”

“What's that?” Emma said, miming holding a phone to her ear. “Here,” she continued, holding her hand out to Ruby. “It's the pot and the kettle. They want a word with you.” Ruby just smacked Emma's hand while Snow, Belle, and Regina snickered.

“So what song are you going to sing?” Snow asked Belle. The brunette's smile was almost evil. “It's a secret.”

“She made her decision on Sunday and she _still_ won't tell me,” Ruby grumbled. “She won't even let me guess.”

“What fun is knowing it ahead of time?” Emma asked. “Belle didn't know what your song would be when you went up there.”

“Neither did I!” Ruby reminded her, which got all of them laughing.

"Next up to the mic we have Miss Belle French!” the bartender announced, and there was a smattering of applause. Belle hopped down from her stool and gave Ruby a rather thorough kiss before heading to the stage.

“I saw that,” Jefferson remarked with a grin, nodding in Ruby's direction. Belle just giggled and gave him a grin in return as she bounced on the balls of her feet, happily in love and not afraid to show it to the world. “So what song can I getcha?” the Hatter asked, and when Belle told him, he faked falling off his stool. “Oof, my heart! The feels!” he teased. Belle rolled her eyes and smacked him on the shoulder, making him laugh.

There was a slight lull in the noise as Belle stepped in front of the mic, smoothing her dress. She caught Ruby giving her the once-over ( _again_ ) out of the corner of her eye and sent her a wink, which she returned along with a lick of her lips. Though she probably should have expected something like that, Belle couldn't help but flush (though Emma was pretending to gag, making Regina and Snow both smack her upside the head). “This is 'Anywhere,' by Evanescence,” Belle said, “and I'm dedicating it to my beautiful fiancée, Ruby Lucas.”

The loud “aww!” from the crowd was accompanied by whoops, cheers, and more applause, and Ruby blew her love a kiss with her left hand. She had been doing a lot of things with her left hand lately for purposes of showing off her engagement ring: a modest diamond set with a ruby on both sides. Belle beamed at her as the music began.

Belle hadn't even begun to sing yet and Ruby's eyes were already filled with tears, even as she smiled at her fiancée with utter devotion. She knew the song – she and Belle knew the song _very_ well. They had sung it together in the shower; they had danced in each other's arms to it, just the two of them and candlelight; they had sung it to each other in the softest of voices when one of them awoke from a nightmare. They wanted it as the first dance for their wedding. That Belle was going to sing it for her in front of so many people made Ruby's heart swell to bursting with love, even as it had been since the moment Ruby first laid eyes on her.

“Ruby, are you ok?” Snow asked, concerned. Regina and Emma looked at her in surprise, figuring that if anyone would understand such a display of affection it would be the better half of True Love's poster couple.

“I'm...just fine,” Ruby managed, her eyes never leaving Belle as the brunette began to sing.

“ _Dear my love, haven't you wanted to be with me?_  
_And dear my love, haven't you longed to be free?_  
 _I can't keep pretending that I don't even know you_  
 _And at sweet night you are my own."_

Belle always told Ruby that she made her feel free – she let her choose her own life, her own fate, her own actions. And Ruby always replied that she was the luckiest woman in the world to be included in the life Belle chose. These were confessions whispered to each other late into the night, when neither could sleep during the aptly-named Hour of the Wolf. In the darkest hour before the dawn, they whispered their deepest secrets and fears to each other – only ever for each other. They shared each other's pain, each other's burdens, each other's tears, and as pale dawn hinted at the sky, it freed them. Ruby had made a vow early on that she would never spend a night away from her mate; she would hold her and protect her as they slept and woke together.

“ _Take my hand,_  
_We're leaving here tonight._  
 _There's no need to tell anyone;_  
 _They'd only hold us down._  
 _So by the morning's light_  
 _We'll be halfway to anywhere,_  
 _Where love is more than just your name.”_

Ruby had learned long ago that hearts could hurt for being broken, but never that they could hurt for being fit to burst with love, unable to contain its infinity. Not until she met Belle. Watching her singing, losing herself in the song as her voice enchanted the audience, Ruby's heart ached with everything she felt for Belle, and she found herself struggling to breathe. With no other outlet, Ruby's love for Belle flowed as unceasing tears of bliss. Ruby never knew one could cry for being happy, either. Not until Belle.

“ _I have dreamt of a place for you and I  
And no one knows who we are there.”_

Ruby smiled as she thought of their clearing in the woods – their solace, their haven, their sanctuary where they could come together beneath the moon. They were different people, there – uninhibited, unrestrained; experiencing, savouring, revelling in their love to its deepest and fullest. They were the Red and the Beauty, there – identities no one else saw and no one else could judge or presume to know.

“ _All I want is to give my life only to you.  
I've dreamt so long I cannot dream anymore.”_

The night Belle had asked Ruby to claim her as a mate was one the wolf-woman would never forget. The thought of being bound together so thoroughly had pervaded both their dreams, inflaming their desires until the night Ruby bit her love deep enough to mark her and Belle's nails pierced the soft skin of Ruby's shoulder. Their dreams had done nothing to prepare them for the overwhelming ecstasy of being bound to each other – of being _complete_.

“ _Let's run away,_  
_I'll take you there..._  
 _There's no need to tell anyone;_  
 _They'd only hold us down._  
 _So by the morning's light_  
 _We'll be halfway to anywhere,_  
 _Where no one needs a reason.”_

Part of Ruby wanted to close her eyes and let the song overtake her completely, but she couldn't take her eyes off Belle. The brunette was losing herself in the song as much as Ruby was, the chorus sliding like silk from her lips and falling like fairy dust over the entranced crowd. Some people had gotten up and started slow dancing; others – like Regina, Emma, and Snow, wide grins on their faces – swayed back and forth where they sat. But Ruby had no idea any of that was going on; her world existed of only Belle, and as if she'd heard the thought, the brunette looked straight into Ruby's eyes as she sang the bridge.

“ _Forget this life, come with me,_  
_Don't look back, you're safe now._  
 _Unlock your heart, drop your guard,_  
 _No one's left to stop you.”_

Early on in their relationship, Ruby had been horrifically insecure, thinking that it was some mistake that a monster like her was lucky enough to be with an angel like Belle. Without meaning to, she had found herself acting like she was walking barefoot on glass shards whenever she was around Belle, doing everything in her power to make sure she was always happy and never had the slightest reason to be mad at her. Belle had pretended not to notice, but on the first night of the first Wolfstime since they'd started dating, Belle hid Ruby's red cloak, locked the two of them in the library, and stood in front of the door with her hands on her hips, demanding an explanation. Panicking, terrified for Belle's safety, Ruby had dropped to her knees sobbing and begged Belle to either give her the cloak back or open the doors. It had broken Belle's heart, but she stood firm, knowing that if Ruby continued acting the way she had been it would tear them apart. Ruby finally gave in, just as her eyes glowed gold, just before she changed. “I love you, Belle!” she had shouted. “But I don't understand how you could ever love me! _I'm a monster!_ ” And then she was the wolf, sitting slumped and with drooping ears as she gazed at the floor in shame.

Belle stared at the Child of the Moon in awe. Ruby had never let her see the wolf before, afraid of scaring or hurting her, but now, staring at the strong, noble, _powerful_ form with luxurious black fur and gentle but sharp golden eyes, Belle was the furthest from scared she'd ever been. It was the brunette's turn to kneel, reaching out and lifting Ruby's muzzle so the two were eye to eye, wolf and woman. “You're _beautiful_!” Belle breathed, a radiant smile spreading across her face. The wolf's ears perked as she sat up a little straighter and her gold eyes seemed to gain a new brightness to them as Belle wrapped her arms around Ruby's neck, burying her face in soft fur with a happy sigh.

They spent the night in Belle's bed in her apartment above the library, Belle curled up against her wolf and scratching her behind the ears as Ruby gave her cheek the occasional tender lick. When the sun rose over two human forms the next morning, Ruby met Belle's gaze with tear-filled eyes.

“I'm sorry,” she whispered, her voice cracking. “I should have...I should have trusted you. I just...I didn't think I could be loved, and nowhere near good or lucky enough to be loved by you.”

Belle tucked a strand of hair behind her ear. “Never doubt that I love you, Ruby Lucas. I wish there was something I could do to erase every moment you've been called a monster, because you're not.” Ruby was about to protest but Belle held a finger to her lips. “The horrors of the past are not your fault. If you had known from the start that you were a Child of the Moon, you wouldn't have hurt a soul. The wolf in you is _beautiful_ , Ruby – _you're_ beautiful.” She held Ruby closer. “You've never really been given a reason or a chance to trust anyone, except maybe Snow. But you can always trust me, Ruby, and I trust you. I love you.”

“I love you too, Belle.” Ruby's tears had become those of happiness. “I feel safe with you. Safe to give you all of me.”

Belle's heart fluttered at the words, hoping they meant what she thought they did. “You're always safe with me,” she murmured, kissing Ruby's forehead. “And you have and always will have all of me.”

After a crack was made about it being lucky Ruby didn't shed, the two made love for the first time.

Now, their gazes meeting as Belle sang with all her heart, Ruby knew that they were both thinking about the morning Ruby had stopped looking back at what her past had made her believe, knowing that she was safe in Belle's arms. The morning they had both unlocked their hearts and dropped their guards with no one left to stop them.

“ _Forget this life, come with me,_  
_Don't look back, you're safe now._  
 _Unlock your heart, drop your guard,_  
 _No one's left to stop you now.”_

There was enough of a musical interlude to give Ruby's heart a reprieve from the fierce ache Belle awoke within it. She had an almost undeniable urge to rush onstage, tackle Belle to the floor, and ravish her senseless, but she had the feeling that doing so in the middle of a crowded bar might be frowned upon. Instead, Ruby met Belle's eyes with a look that conveyed her desires, and the brunette's eyes sparkled with mischief even as she blushed in return.

After meeting Ruby's loving gaze, Belle used the break in vocals to scan the rest of the bar. Couples were still dancing – some even sharing quick, subtle kisses at this point, wrapped up in the music – and even Emma and Regina had fallen prey to the song. Though they both still faced the stage, their arms were wrapped around each other as they swayed back and forth. Emma had laid her head on Regina's shoulder, and the mayor pressed a soft kiss to blonde hair as she drew her love closer. Snow was quite pointedly ignoring all of it.

Belle chuckled before looking back at Ruby, the two of them locking gazes again as Belle sang the last chorus.

“ _We're leaving here tonight._  
_There's no need to tell anyone;_  
 _They'd only hold us down._  
 _So by the morning's light_  
 _We'll be halfway to anywhere,_  
 _Where love is more than just your name.”_

Belle let the last note linger as the song drew to an end, and when the final chord drifted over the crowd, the entirety of the bar erupted in cheers. Blushing and grinning, Belle curtseyed before accepting a high-five from Jefferson and making her way back to Ruby. Her fiancée had hopped off her stool so she could greet Belle by swooping her into a devastating kiss that left the brunette seeing stars.

“Marry me!” Ruby demanded more than asked, repeating Belle's words from the week before, an elated grin splitting her face.

Belle's own smile was just as wide and giddy as she kissed Ruby again. “I thought I already was?” she teased.

“Well, yeah,” Ruby admitted, reaching into her pocket, “but I needed an excuse to get you a ring.” She brought forth a blue velvet box and held it before Belle, opening it for her to see. The diamond was a little smaller than the one on Ruby's ring, but it was because the gem was surrounded by a multitude of tiny sapphires. Belle's eyes filled with tears as she brought a shaking hand to her mouth, overwhelmed and stunned and dizzy with adoration. She looked from the ring to the woman she loved more than anything in the world and back, then held out her hand. Ruby hadn't thought she could smile any wider, but her lips actually hurt as she slid the ring onto her love's finger. She soothed the pain by pulling Belle into another ferocious kiss, one the smaller brunette returned with equal vigour.

“ _Really_ , Emma?” Snow chastised.

“Shush. They'll thank me later,” she replied without looking away from the video she was taking with her iPhone.

**Author's Note:**

> ["Anywhere," by Evanescence](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M4w0n68ICIs)   
>  ~~~~  
>  [My cover of "Anywhere"](https://soundcloud.com/green78/anywhere-cover)   
> 


End file.
